How The Times Compared E.P.A. Enforcement Across Three Administrations

By The New York Times

Dec. 10, 2017

The analysis by The New York Times of the Trump administration’s record in enforcing environmental regulations was based on data compiled by the Environmental Protection Agency and publicly available in its Enforcement and Compliance History Online database.

Because the online records are not always immediately updated, the analysis also accounted for cases pursued under Mr. Trump that were available in E.P.A. and Justice Department news releases, the federal register, court documents and other public sources.

The analysis covered a period of 266 days in each of the Trump, Obama and George W. Bush administrations.

For the Trump administration, it included cases beginning Feb. 17, when Scott Pruitt, the E.P.A. administrator, began his job, and ending Nov. 9. For an equivalent comparison to the two previous administrations, the analysis covered the first 266 days of Lisa Jackson’s tenure at the E.P.A., starting on Jan. 23, 2009, and of Christine Todd Whitman’s tenure, starting on Jan. 31, 2001.

Because many cases completed during the first year of any new administration reflect enforcement begun by the previous administration, the analysis included only cases filed under each of the three administrators.

Cynthia Giles, the former assistant administrator for the E.P.A.’s enforcement office during the Obama administration, had compiled a similar enforcement database that she shared with The Times. Using Ms. Giles’s approach as a model, but changing some parameters, The Times built its own. The results of the analysis were vetted by Ms. Giles and other environmental experts, including Granta Nakayama, a former assistant administrator for the E.P.A.’s enforcement office during the Bush administration. The results were also shared with current officials at the E.P.A.

The E.P.A. is expected to announce its annual enforcement figures in the coming weeks. The agency generally measures cases that have been closed in the past year, rather than cases filed. In its response to The Times, the E.P.A. cited billions of dollars in civil penalties represented by cases completed since President Trump took office, but many of those cases were filed under the previous administration so were not included in The Times’s tally.

The agency also pointed out it can take months or even years to develop a case to the point that it can be filed, so “data from the last nine months is not dependent solely on work that has been performed during this administration.”

The Times analyzed the two types of civil enforcement actions — judicial cases and administrative cases.

In judicial cases, the Justice Department pursues legal action against polluters on behalf of the E.P.A. These can result in large fines and injunctive relief, which is the cost of making changes to prevent further violations. The Times’s analysis included all judicial cases filed with a court.

Administrative cases are typically smaller actions that move faster and do not involve the Justice Department, but can result in fines and injunctive relief. The analysis included administrative cases with complaints, proposed orders or final orders.

In comparing the fines and injunctive relief totals, the totals for 2001 and 2009 were adjusted for inflation.

The E.P.A.’s online records change on a daily basis, meaning The Times’s database is a snapshot in time and data downloaded on different days might show different results.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page A19 of the New York edition with the headline: How The Times Analyzed E.P.A. Actions. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe